Wrestling with WXYZ Reporter Mike Rosenfield

03.03.2011

Newsroom

The brainy broadcaster thinks he can pin down Red Thread … We’ll see!

RT: The following inference seems true — but maybe you can verify its accuracy: “If it bleeds, it leads.”MR: I’ve never actually heard that expression in any newsroom I’ve ever worked in. The only time I’ve ever heard it is from newspaper or online columnists who like to critique local news.

RT: You started your broadcast career at Inside Edition. How does “celebrity” journalism compare to the real stuff?MR: It’s amazing how much appetite there is for celebrity journalism. I think celebrity journalists rely a lot more on unnamed sources — rumors — and they pay big money for tips, photos and interviews. That does not happen in local news.

RT: You’re from Boston — yet you aren’t really a Masshole! Name us three differences between the cities from a newsman’s perspective.MR: I love Massholes; I didn’t know people outside [Massachusetts] knew that word! The biggest differences between the news markets: the Boston accents and the sports teams. I can’t think of a third right now; my brain is frozen from live shots in the icy cold weather.

RT: Is it hard being the newbie when you move to a new market?MR: Yes, it pretty much goes for any office.

RT: Did Diana Lewis make you go through Hell Week?MR: Diana is heavenly — one of the nicest people I have ever met.

RT: What was the scariest story you had to cover where you nearly peed yourself?MR: I can usually keep it together pretty well, no matter the circumstances, but huge fires always make me very aware of my surroundings. When an inferno is taking place, I always make sure I know a fast exit for my photographer and myself.

RT: OK, Mr. Microphone-on-your-lapel Man, time for the speed round: Single or married?MR: Single.

RT: News or Free Press?MR:WXYZ.com.
(Cheeky! He must be getting close to a performance review.)

RT: Canadian Club or Canadian bacon?MR: Canadian bacon on a weekend morning, Canadian Club on a Friday night.

RT: If blood really does get top billing, despite what you “claim,” why must all local news sign off with film of puppies kissing babies?MR: Ratings.